


A Bond Between Time And Space

by MechanistGamma



Category: Sonic the Hedgehog (IDW Comics), Sonic the Hedgehog (Video Games), Sonic the Hedgehog - All Media Types
Genre: F/M, Silver Backstory
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-24
Updated: 2020-07-20
Packaged: 2021-03-01 18:55:46
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 10,876
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23821939
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MechanistGamma/pseuds/MechanistGamma
Summary: Silver the Hedgehog, the infamous time traveler responsible for both saving and endangering the future. His story is long and far from finished, but his history with others such as Blaze the Cat, Shadow the Hedgehog and Espio the Chameleon shapes Silver as a person - no matter what the prime timeline is shaped to be! Join Silver and Blaze as they face villains from across time and space itself, conquering the time stream itself to reunite and finish the fight they started back in that burned future so long ago.
Relationships: Blaze the Cat/Silver the Hedgehog
Comments: 10
Kudos: 32





	1. A Dead World (Prologue Arc)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Silver's father writes a letter to future generations, Silver is forced to survive on his own in a ruined world, and our heroes meet for the first time. Cake is involved somehow.

_If there is one thing I know for sure, it’s this.  
_

_Our world died long before I was born.  
_

_Under two hundred years ago, there was a great crisis. The only thing that all of us survivors know about it is that it’s the day that some event caused the monster that ravaged our world to be unleashed. It started in the city formerly known as Soleanna. A ship crashed on the mountainside from the battle between two great factions - one, an entire empire; the other, a group of rebels. From the ruins of that great ship came a tornado of fire, and a monster clawed its way out of the ruins. The only witness to the event was one of those rebels. All the rest of the world saw was a torrent of flame cutting through the sky, like a dagger from hell itself tearing heaven asunder.  
_

_It didn’t take long for death to spread like wildfire.  
_

_Legions of monsters appeared across the world. The creatures we now call the Ibli, the Progeny of Iblis, burned like walking lava. They tore through cities and nature alike, leaving nothing left but fire and stone - the same substances that make up the creatures. Commanding them all is the fearsome monster… the Flame Demon, Iblis. The creature that destroyed the hope of the world. The creature that killed every last one of the individuals recognized as strong. It even destroyed the hero of the old world. The golden light was extinguished… and with it went the last hope of humanity.  
_

_Those who tried to fight Iblis and its monsters all died. There were two more options to survive that people attempted. There were those who tried to colonize the new, destroyed world, taking a passive and defensive approach. The humans and their governments tried to create domed cities, sealed from the Ibli’s rampage. Slowly, however, each of these domes were pierced and wiped out. Humankind slowly went extinct, and all of the blame for the incursions was placed onto their former savior… the black figure that broke a hole in the domes themselves and led the Ibli inside.  
_

_There were those that believed that establishments such as the domes wouldn’t survive became nomads. Salvagers. Survivors. Some of these individuals banded together into groups, but no community larger than 50 people managed to survive at once. Too many people meant too much death, something no one person could handle. But at the same time, the independence and survivability of these nomads ensured they did what the domes never had a chance at - surviving with the Ibli.  
_

_My parents were nomads, and their parents before them. This story, details lost as it may be, has been passed down through the generations. I only hope that my version of this story won’t fade like so many others have.  
If you find this in a better life, a better time… then do not forget the suffering of two centuries. Do not forget the Age of Iblis.  
_

_-Venice Rose_

\---

“Dad? What are you writing?”

“Just a letter, dearest.”

“To who?”

“Well… I’m not sure who. That’s part of the reason I’m writing it.”

The hedgehog set down his quill. He was getting old. 36 years tomorrow. While that may not have been an old age in the old world, making it to 50 in the same world as the Ibli was considered by many nomads to be a miracle. It was time he left yet another memoir of the history he had been taught in hopes it would survive to future generations. Opening the small box he had brought with him, he folded up the paper and placed it inside. “I’m going to bury this, Silver. I won’t go far, so please stay here.”

Silver gently nodded. The seven-year-old had already known death when he was younger, and he knew by now that questioning his father was a bad idea. His father knew how to survive, and though he’d taught Silver many things, the young hedgehog was confident that Venice’s instructions and experience was how they would survive. At least until he was ready to go out on his own. Leaving his father didn’t appeal to him, but they both knew that Venice would die some day. Until then, though, they had each other.

Silver glanced around at the building they’d managed to locate. It was a skyscraper in one of the many burning cities of the world. He’d seen some old signs calling this Star Light Zone, but the shot power grid gave him no clue as to why. All the light he’d seen came from either the sun or the fire, and the former only rarely appeared in the pockets the smoke from the flames didn’t obscure the sky. It was safe enough. Due to its island placement, it wasn’t often that the Ibli chose to ravage it. It was also fairly distant from the mainland, making it difficult for scavengers to claim the island’s resources for their own unless they already lived there. Oh, and the building Venice had chosen was sturdy and seemed to already have some weak defenses, making it a good place to stake out. They’d been there for about a year, just scavenging and surviving. It wasn’t going to last forever, but it’d last for the amount of time they needed it to.

Right?

A sudden scream distracted Silver. That was Venice. “DAD!” Instinctively using his powers in spite of Venice’s warning not to unless it was an emergency, Silver flew right through the broken window towards the scream.

On the street below, he saw Venice reach out his arm and grab hold of a lamp post, the cyan blue light around the post yanking it forwards and bending it around the Ibli so tightly that it crumbled in two. The elder hedgehog panted, the other arm evidently burnt and scarred heavily. Silver flew over to him. “Dad! Are you alright?!”

“Silver! I told you to stay inside.” He hissed. “It’s not safe here anymore. An Ibli horde is entering the city.

“What?” Silver was shocked. “But… but you said they wouldn’t-”

“Not for at least a year, I know. But they’re here.” Venice put his working arm on his son’s shoulder. “You remember that backpack we found? Load it up with a month’s worth of canned food, the tarp and the water purifier.”

Silver nodded. He didn’t want to question his father. While loading a normal backpack with that many items would be near impossible, especially for a young mobian, Silver had had the fortune of finding a cargo backpack made for a human. The bag itself was almost as big as he was. Silver lifted it up with psychokinesis, grabbing the items one by one and stuffing them into the sack. He zipped it up quickly when he was done. The straps were almost double the length of his tiny arms, but he pulled them over his shoulders and under his arms anyways. The bag was almost impossible for him to lift with his weak frame, which was why he supported it with psychokinesis.

“Dad! I got the-”

“Good, now FLY!”

Venice was in the air. He threw a cluster of pebbles from his hand, turning them into high-speed bullets with a psychic push as he launched them towards the Iblis Takers. The stones slammed through their molten wings, downing the lava birds. Silver flew up next to his father. “Your arm, dad, is it-”

“I can deal with it.” Venice winced.

He couldn’t, though. The pain was already racking his mind and making it hard to concentrate. It could very well have been a fatal wound, save for the fact he wasn’t losing blood due to the searing hot temperature of the monsters. A blessing in disguise, seemingly. As he flew, his psychic barrier began to falter.

“Dad?”

“We need… we need to find somewhere to hide.”

With a nod, Silver began looking around. He soon found what looked like an abandoned warehouse on the other end of the city. “Will that work?”

“Yes, it should- AGH!”

“DAD!”

Silver caught Venice, the older man slumping over in pain. He was breathing deeply. That wound was deeper than he thought… And it was most definitely painful. “I’m carrying you now.” Silver stated. It wasn’t a request, it was a fact he was clarifying. He gave his father no chance for argument as they flew down towards the warehouse, throwing the supply bag through a window to break it and soar in. He set down his father. “Dad, are you…?”

“I’m not going to lie… it really hurts.” Venice admitted. “Don’t think I’m going anywhere from here.”

“Then I’m not either.” Silver huffed, dragging the bag to his side.

“Silver, don’t be an idiot.” Venice grunted, the burning in his arm getting worse. “You know what life is like out here. Kid or no. It’s survival, and if you don’t survive you’re toast. We survived long enough. Got lucky. But my luck ran out…”

“Hey, Dad, don’t be like that…” Silver tried to put a hand on his shoulder, but Venice shrugged it off.

“The Ibli are coming, Silver.”

They both knew it. As psychics, they could feel the faint wisps of the minimal sentience those monsters possessed.

“This warehouse isn’t going to keep us hidden for long.”

“I-I know that, but…!”

“They know we’re here, Silver.”

“But I can’t just-”

“GO, SILVER.”

The stern words caused Silver to take a step back. With a deep sigh, he realized what his father was asking. He was asking for Silver to leave him for dead, run and survive. That’s just how life was in this world.

“...I had so many things to ask you.”

“You’ll find your own answers.”

Silver quickly brushed away the tear that began to fall on his face. No time for crying. Psychic energy surrounded him once more as he grabbed the bag, flying across the warehouse. He didn’t look back for even a moment, knowing that if he did he’d stop going.

The wall collapsed with a hiss of fire, but the bricks began to fly back. He wasn’t going down without a fight.

That’s his dad. Fighting to the last breath.

Death’s just a fact of life in a world like this.

\---

“Drat… Nothing here, either.”

Silver let out a sigh as he put down the empty fridge. If there was one thing he’d made sure to keep after all this time, it was a calendar. The passage of time was important - the ticking clock showed you were always moving forward. Which is why he knew that today was his tenth birthday. Was it too much to hope for a cake?

He took one last glance around the room in hopes of some hidden compartment or secret stash he could uncover to ensure his week’s worth of rations wouldn’t go towards his birthday dinner. Nothing he could see. Not even the large, red symbol of a mustached man on the wall held any secrets. If there was anything there, it was long gone. Braving a bunch of old death traps, and for what? Two hundred years’ worth of raiders were far smarter than he was, clearly. Setting the backpack on his shoulders yet again, Silver flew up. He slowly returned to the main hall, looking towards the old map of Westside Island.  
****

**Metropolis Zone - You Are Here!**

“If there’s nothing here, maybe I could look into that Casino Night area…”

“Raider. Leave this place.”

Silver turned at the sound of the sudden voice… only for a blast of flame to sear right past him. Silver barely dodged the strike, the flames hitting what was left of the old map and burning it to cinders. “Oh, damn it!” Silver couldn’t worry about the map for long, though. Looking around, he saw a broken metal table. He flew underneath it, flames hitting the ground just barely behind him. Who was attacking him? And from where? He didn’t know, but he’d dealt with the shoot-first-ask-questions-later type before. He’d escaped them with his powers before. But this was different. Metropolis Zone, outside of its inner halls, was a death trap. He knew that quite well - the cut on his leg, though not deep, still hadn’t faded from when the buzzsaw had slashed it on his way in. Escaping it while he had to worry about these flames coming at him would be almost impossible. It’d be too dangerous. He’d have to confront this foe directly.  
But he started thinking about what the person meant. _Leave this place? Like this is their home?_ “H-hold on!” Silver tried to justify himself from behind the table. “I’m just a nomad! I’m looking for supplies, that’s all. If you’re set up here, I’ll just take what I have and leave.”

“Lies!” The voice snarled back. It sounded like a young girl… The same age as him, maybe? “You’ll just bring more of your raider friends here to take my supplies, and we’ll all die to the Ibli!”

“I’m alone!” Silver responded. “I’m trying to live out here like the rest of us. Just let me go, and you’ll never see me again.”

“Then leave the bag.” the girl said.

“That’s all I have left!” Silver couldn’t do that. Leaving the bag behind would be dooming himself to a slow, painful death.

“Either you leave the bag or you leave in pieces!” The girl said. Silver quickly crawled away from the surface of the metal table, feeling it heat up greatly. His shelter would break soon…

“I choose Option 3!”

Silver grabbed the table with his powers, launching it backwards quickly. It soared through the air before crashing into the wall, the girl now visible. She was a purple cat, by the looks of things… She rolled out of the way of the table, firing off a blast of flame from her hands. _No equipment… So she’s like me, then._ Silver caught the flames with his psychokinesis, dispersing them with a grunt of effort. He grabbed a pole off the wall, sending it right towards the cat like a javelin. She dodged it yet again, but Silver quickly twisted the pole to the side and hit her in the head. She rolled, a small wave of fire running across the ground. As the cat was recovering, Silver flew right up to her and grabbed her hands, pinning her against the wall.

“I don’t want to hurt you. Just let me go.”

The girl looked down, her face somber.

“...one way or another, you’re going to die out there. It’s better if one of us has a better chance to live…”

“And why can’t we both live?!”

She was shocked, turning to look at Silver with obvious surprise in her eyes at his ideology. “What do you-”

“What divine law says we’re not both allowed to live through this?” Silver questioned. “Why does anyone have to resign themselves to death, so long as hope still lives? Because we can still have hope! Two hundred years, and we were born. Generations before us survived to get us to where we are now. I think we can keep living just like they did.”

The girl seemed to be pondering that. She looked to the side, her eyes glazed with despair.

“That’s such a naive philosophy…”

But there was a smile on her face as she said it.

“It’s… been very lonely, being alone here.” She confessed. “What’s… your name?”

“My name?” The hedgehog blinked. “It’s Silver. I’m Silver the Hedgehog.”

“Blaze.” The girl introduced herself. “I’m not going to hurt you anymore. You’re a good person. I know that now. Could you…?”

“Oh, right!” Silver gently released Blaze, allowing her to regain her balance on the ground. “Well… it’s been nice meeting you, Blaze. I’d better head out now. I want to try and-”

As Silver turned to leave, Blaze grabbed his wrist.

“Silver… Can you show me that hope of yours?”

\---

“Happy birthday to me, happy birthday to me! Happy birthday, dear Silver, happy birthday to me.”

The teenage hedgehog did a short little dance as he walked across the familiar dark green halls. His birthday had finally come, and Silver was actually excited. Today, they had enough supplies to spare a bit on some fun.

“Oh, you’re awake.”

As Silver entered the kitchen, he nodded happily. “Yep! Sorry for sleeping in, but last night was _exhausting_ as far as supply raids go.”

“You deserved the rest. That’s why I let you sleep in.” With a smirk, Blaze turned to Silver. She had a slightly-singed apron on that they’d managed to salvage a few weeks back. “It gave me time to prepare something special, too.”

“Something special?” Silver questioned. He tried to look over her shoulder, but Blaze pushed his face back with a hand.

“C’mon, Silver. Be patient for a bit.”

“...y’know, you look kinda cute with that apron.”

“...”

*squish*

“OW! MY NOSE!”

It didn’t take long for Blaze to finish what she was working on, in spite of constantly looking over a book they’d managed to salvage. A cookbook, according to the cover. Silver waited in the living room on the half-broken couch, as Blaze had forced him to leave the kitchen. Even though he was the one that cooked for them…

“Alright, Silver. You can come back in now.”

The hedgehog sat up, strolling into the kitchen to find…

“A… cake?”

Silver looked at the bountiful dessert, seeing the chocolatey cake covered with a white icing, cherries and sprinkles dotting the top of it.

“Happy fourteenth birthday!” Blaze gave Silver a wide smile. She placed a singular small candle on top, snapping to light it aflame.

Silver marveled at the cake. “Blaze, you… you didn’t need to do this for me!”

“You’re my friend, Silver. I _wanted_ to do this.” Blaze replied. “Besides, it’s not like we were going to use the sprinkles or cake icing for anything nutritious.”

“...thank you.”

“Always, Silver.”

As Silver sat down, using a knife to split the cake into pieces, he and Blaze each took their first slice. He looked at her sitting next to him. The beautiful young woman that she was. Hard to imagine this was the same girl who had almost fried him exactly four years ago… But there was no one he’d rather share this terrible time with than her.

“Blaze…”

“Yeah, Silver?”

“I don’t know what I’d do without you.”

“...I feel the same.”

Silver took Blaze’s hand in his own. “Please… never leave me, Blaze. And we’ll keep hope alive together. Just the two of us, if we need to.”

Blaze chuckled. She took Silver’s hand and moved it over her heart.

“I will always be with you, Silver. No matter what. Your eternal friend.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to A Bond Beyond Time And Space! This is a series I've been wanting to get started for a while now, specifically focused on retelling the story of Silver and Blaze across all the games they appear in to fit the narrative of a conjoined story between the two. This first chapter is primarily to get all the setup out of the way in order to tell the story proper. Prologue Arc will last for two more chapters before we get into the bulk of the narratives - a full revision of the roles played by Silver and Blaze in the Sonic games, and what exactly they do in those games means for their individual stories and shared tale. I can't promise chapters in a regular pattern, as it honestly can only happen when I can crank out the inspiration to do so. But expect a chapter per month, at the very least! I plan to continue the story of my favorite Sonic characters for a long time. I'll see you folks back here for the next chapter, where we'll get to see Silver and Blaze's day-to-day life in a destroyed world. Stand by, as Mephiles will enter the stage before long! Thanks for reading. (P.S. AO3 formatting is still so weird to me. I'll figure out indentation some day. When I do, I'll fix this damn formatting! I hope it's legible enoug that you guys can enjoy the story regardless...)


	2. Life in a Dead World (Prologue Arc)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> On a routine scavenging run, Silver and Blaze encounter a group of nomads. When they move to rescue the nomads from a pack to Ibli, they never expected to come face-to-face with the end of the world...

“Blaze! Check this out!”

Silver had a wide grin on his face as he held up the container, blue glass holding ten rings within it. “Some rings! We’ll be able to use these to get the generator restarted.”

“Oh, that’s perfect!” Blaze quickly ran over. “It’s been a long time since we’ve had proper light in the lower floors.”

The duo had taken a trip northward to Mirage Island for the latest supply run. It had paid off well, as they’d managed to find a Zone very similar to Metropolis Zone. Mad Gear was the name they found on the computers that still had power. Booby traps aside - which Blaze had quickly destroyed anyways - it was a worthwhile excursion. Plenty of rations were still there. Blaze had even managed to find some old fertilizer - perfect for the garden they had been attempting to grow.

Silver picked up the fertilizer back and the ring box with his psychokinesis. “Don’t think these will be fitting in the backpack.”

Blaze gave a light chuckle. “No, I don’t think they will. Are we still clear?”

Silver took a moment’s pause, doing a brief psychic sweep. No minds nearby aside from Blaze and himself. Not even the hollowness of an Ibli. “Yeah, we’re good. Let’s roll!”

Blaze quickly hopped after Silver as the pair left the death trap, avoiding the remaining buzz saws and flamethrowers as they had on their way in. As they flew, however, Silver noticed something in the distance that looked like ancient ruins. “That seems interesting. Think it’s worth a look, Blaze?”

“With our current loot, risking it is dangerous.” Blaze replied. “If we can store this stuff back at Metropolis, we can come back here another time.”

Silver nodded. While those ruins looked really interesting, it was too dangerous to go out of their way for what could turn out to be nothing.

“SOMEONE, HELP! PLEASE!”

That wasn’t nothing.

“Silver, what are you-” Blaze wasn’t able to butt in before Silver blasted off, soaring towards the ruins. She let out a grunt, making sure her satchel was still tight as she leapt off after Silver. 

The pair arrived at a small camp set up on top of one of the hills. Or at least… what was left of it. The wooden spiked fence around the camp had been burned through, and the tents were set aflame. The scorched, sandy earth under Silver’s feet reminded him that this was a futile defense in a deadly world. And just up ahead, the people he’d heard before… and a pack of Ibli.

“Blaze, there’s people in there. A pack of nomads!” Silver said, turning to his companion. “If we can help them…”

“It’s a risk to our supplies, but…” Blaze mulled it over. “I’ll get the Ibli’s attention, you take them out!” She dashed into the ruins as Silver nodded, flying behind her.

As the pair entered the mysterious cavern, Blaze looked around with eyes wide. “It’s… incredible.”

“What’s incredible?” Silver asked. His eyes were closed as he was focused on tracking the fleeing nomads.

Blaze bumped him in the side, and Silver opened his eyes… to see the ceiling above them was coated with shining green crystals. “That’s… beautiful. I didn’t know something like this could even exist!”

“Seems like there’s still some natural beauty the Ibli haven’t gotten to yet…” Blaze chuckled happily. 

A scream from ahead disturbed the pair, snapping them out of their wonder. Blaze picked up the pace, ignoring the crystal caves as Silver continued tracking.

“Just up ahead… go down!”

In order to follow Silver’s instructions, Blaze would have to drop through a wooden bridge. So she did, surrounding herself in flames and spinning through the logs. She fell down, keeping an eye on where she was going to land. Several pits below… She managed to land one foot on a crystal jutting out from the wall, using it to leap forwards and clear the gaps. Silver flew down right behind her, ready to catch her if she had missed. She landed on a boardwalk, creating a burst of fire from her feet just long enough to shoot forwards across the boardwalk and reach max speed in an instant. “Silver, how much further?”

“They’re about fifty feet away, directly in front of us!”

“Silver, that’s a WALL!”

The hedgehog opened his eyes to see Blaze skidding to a halt in front of a rock surface, jagged crystals coming out from it. “Oh. So it is.” Silver began to think, looking around the area. There were some destroyed robots nearby, likely two decades old. Drilling bots, hm? “Let’s hope this is a thin wall…” Reaching out with his psychokinesis, Silver snapped the metal drills off the faces of the robots, yanking the nine mechanical nozzles into a circular formation and stabbing them into the wall. It was a strain on his mind, but he knew he could do it… So Silver began to twist all the drills rapidly, sending them burrowing through the wall and weakening the formation. After a few seconds, he let out a pant as nine holes had been opened in the portion of the wall they needed to get through. “Blaze, can you weaken what’s left?”

She understood, snapping. A ring of fire appeared around the pattern left by the holes, the remaining dirt and stone scorched by the hot flames. As soon as it was weak enough, the barely-held-together segment of the wall was torn out by Silver, who tossed the crystal and rocks to the side.

Wasting no time, the pair leapt through. The pause to open that hole had sent the family a bit further ahead - probably away from the drills, as Silver noticed one of the nine drills was missing. They weren’t far, however - Silver could still sense them. Blaze blasted down the hallway, a large chamber with a low roof approaching…

And the Ibli in sight.

“Disgusting monsters. Return to the ash you came from!”

Blaze leapt for one of the Iblis Biters. The lava hound turned at the sight of the cat, unable to react fast enough to avoid Blaze’s flaming foot slamming it in the side of the head. Two more Iblis Biters leapt towards Blaze, but they were grabbed by Silver and slammed into each other. Silver threw his two Iblis Biters into Blaze’s one, allowing Blaze to incinerate them with a blast of flame from her palm.

“Are you alright?” Silver asked, turning towards the nomads.

Among the pack was a man that looked like a human - he had turquoise skin, and what looked like rivets on his face. His broken glasses were unable to hide the fear in his eyes. “Y-Yes, thank you!” he said, holding the scared Tenrec at his side close. 

“Silver, watch your back!” Blaze quickly leapt to Silver’s side, smacking away another Iblis Biter. 

“Right, thanks.” Taking a deep breath, Silver gathered his energy. That feat with the wall had taken a fair bit of his stamina… 

And he wasn’t prepared to take on the leader of the pack just yet.

At the other end of the hall was an Iblis Golem. Two Iblis Takers flew at its side, with the rest of the Iblis Biters already running towards Blaze. Silver looked around, and landed his eyes on the ceiling… He had a good way to deal with them. “Blaze, burn the ceiling for me!”

“Right!” She didn’t even hesitate, knowing Silver had a reason behind his actions. Putting her hands together, she blasted fire forth from them and singed the ceiling above the group.

With a clap, Silver radiated his psychic field over those burnt crystals - specifically, the ones above the Ibli. Clutching his hand, he grabbed them and pulled hard. “TAAAAAKE THIS!” As Blaze flipped back, the volley of crystals broke free from the ceiling and fell down onto the Ibli like a shower of knives. The crystals pierced the monsters, killing the Biters and Takers instantly.

But the Golem was still standing, lumbering towards the two heroes. As it walked, the room shook.

Was that just the Golem…?

Blaze leapt into action, jumping over the Golem. As she did, she unleashed a few quick kicks in an attempt to push the crystals further into the beast. Its armor was tough… The Golem turned around to throw its arm at Blaze, which she backflipped over. With the beast’s back now exposed, Silver noticed something odd was embedded in its shoulder… the ninth drill from earlier! So he’d hit the Golem with it. Golems were the toughest of the Ibli, their armor nigh unbreakable and their strength able to destroy buildings in a single blow. But the group was boxed in. Running wasn’t an option. If Silver could expose the monster’s core…

He got an idea. Silver grabbed the drill with his psychokinesis, beginning to burrow with it into the armor of the Golem. The cooled magma armor was chipped away before the drill broke through the shoulder plate, shifting the armor on the head so that a visible gap was present. “Blaze, hit the opening!”

The cat did so, sending a powerful precision kick directly into the crack. The armor broke, with the covering flipping backwards like a hinge thrown open to reveal the hot red core. “Silver, finish it!”

With a grunt, Silver grabbed hold of the monster telekinetically. He launched it upwards and behind him, sending the Golem towards the nomads… and impaling it on the spikes above them.

“Hahah! How d’you like that?!” Silver laughed, pumping his fist as the monster disintegrated into dust. With a sigh, Blaze gave a tired thumbs-up.

The nomads, meanwhile, were in shock. “You… you took down an entire pack of Ibli! You’re incredible!” The Tenrec said, speaking up. She looked towards Silver and Blaze with stars in her eyes.

“Ja, such power!” The man clapped lightly, marveling at the strength of the pair. “With skill like zat… You two are going to go far, I just know it.”

Suddenly, the cave began to rumble.

“What is-”

“No, not now!”

“It can’t be…!”

Silver looked over towards Blaze. He gave her a confused look. “What are they talking about?”

“I don’t know.” Blaze began to search the cave, her gaze going back and forth. “What’s causing those rumblings?”

“You don’t know?” The man looked towards them in shock. “We must go, quickly! Zat rumbling, it means that it’s-”

“ _It_ ? What’s _it_?” Silver questioned.

“Iblis is here.”

The roof of the cave suddenly collapsed inwards, the nomads screaming in fear. Silver’s eyes went wide in shock as a massive molten red hand fell through the roof, even the crystals themselves evaporating to nothingness at the touch.

“We’re leaving. Now!”

Silver was in motion, but not of his own pull. Blaze was now dragging Silver forwards, holding onto his arm and forcing him to run. “Blaze, wait! What about the others?!”

“They’ll follow! Just come on!”

Silver turned to look behind, and the nomads were running after them. None of the ordinary people there were as fast as Silver, however… And the large lava hand was sweeping through the cavern ahead of them, collapsing the cave and destroying the rare natural beauty left. He reached out his hand to the group, trying to grab them in his psychic field…

But the last thing he saw was the Tenrec reaching out her hand towards him before the cave roof fell to pieces above the nomads.

“NO!”

Silver was helpless as the nomads vanished from his view forever.

Blaze made a quick decision. She grabbed Silver’s legs, holding him bridal-style as she broke into a dash, the fire beneath her feet allowing her to soar back up through the bridge she’d made a hole in as she made a mad dash for the entrance. Silver, meanwhile, couldn’t help but look behind him.

They broke out back into the burning, sandy camp. Silver didn’t even look to where the intense heat was coming from. He felt like he was frozen. Unable to move. Helpless.

“We… We finally found people… Innocent people just needing help… We saved them… Why… Why did they…?”

“Silver, get it together!” Blaze put Silver down on his feet, forcing him to stand. He sagged for a moment, but she grabbed his shoulders and held him up. “Hey! Come on, Silver! I can’t get us back to Westside if you don’t take us!”

“Gone… They’re all…”

“SILVER, GET US THE _HELL_ OUT OF HERE!”

Blaze’s shout snapped Silver out of it. He looked up to see tears streaming down her snarling face. She was just as broken as he was over this, but she had her priorities straight. Either they escaped, or they died.

Silver knew that dying wasn’t an option. Not if they were going to keep hope alive.

Silver surrounded himself and Blaze in psychic energy, making sure he didn’t leave out their scavenged supplies, and blasted into the sky. Back to home. He turned back behind him for a moment as soon as they were at a safe distance. He wanted to know his enemy…

And he saw it. A gargantuan monster, several stories tall. Ash grey cooled magma armor, much like the Titan but far larger, covered the kaiju’s back. But it's chest was nothing but sharp, molten hot lava. And its head… The monster’s jagged teeth were small, almost pinpricks, but surely designed to stab through any life it could get its mouth close to. Silver looked in its eye, and saw nothing but monstrous hatred for life…

“So that’s our enemy. Iblis…”

Silver turned away from the beast, blasting off into the distance.

\---

“What good is hope if we can’t keep those hopeful people alive…?”

Silver was curled up on the couch, Blaze sitting on the other end of the couch with her head low. The two had returned to Metropolis, but had spoken little.

“Silver…” Blaze spoke up. She opened her mouth to continue… but couldn’t get the words out. She closed her mouth, looking back away.

“I mean it.” Silver continued. “There’s no point in hope if there’s no one to be hopeful. We’re only here by a miracle. Some day or later, we’ll all be wiped out by Iblis, won’t we? That monster and his endless hordes…”

Blaze was shocked, looking at him and standing up. “What?! Silver, this isn’t like you! What happened to living like those before us did?!”

“What happens to those who _can’t_ defend themselves?” Silver retorted in a low voice, his eyes blankly staring into his knees. “They get burned alive, or killed by their fellow man, or get a ceiling dropped on them. We’re lucky, Blaze, but so many people aren’t…”

“Oh, bullshit!”

Silver was suddenly grabbed by Blaze, who pulled him forward. “So what if we’re lucky?! That doesn’t matter. Anyone can die at any time in this hell of an earth. That doesn’t mean we should just give up and accept it! _Why does anyone have to resign themselves to death, so long as hope still lives?_ You told me that four years ago. What changed?”

“I-”

“You’re a _beacon_ of hope, Silver.” Blaze shook him. “You inspire people just by being around. Even those nomads were smiling when you were there. You couldn’t stop what happened there. So change what you can, damn it! Be the inspiration for others that you were for me! Make a _difference!_ ”

Silver took a moment to mull it over. Taking a deep breath, he nodded. “...you’re right. If we’re alive, we’ve got to do something with it. Hope, right?”

“Yeah. Hope.”

Blaze gave Silver a genuine smile. He tiredly returned it.

“If there’s one good thing about what happened…” Silver sighed. “We know the face of our enemy now. Iblis.”

“The source of the Ibli. All of them.” Blaze nodded.

“...wait, the source?” Silver turned towards her.

“You didn’t know?” Blaze blinked. “It’s common nomad knowledge. Iblis is the beast that destroyed this world in the first place. The Ibli are lava monsters built the same way as he is. They all come from him.”

“And if he still has some connection to his drones, that explains how he knew we were at the cave…” Silver pondered. “Wait! Does that mean that if Iblis was somehow destroyed-”

“No.” Blaze held a hand in front of her. “Don’t even entertain that idea.”

“But it’s possible!” Silver said. “If we could destroy Iblis, we could take out all the Ibli at once! We could save the world!”

Blaze sighed, crossing her arms. “Iblis destroyed the world by itself. I don’t think we’re strong enough to fight him.”

“But we can at least try, right?”

Silver clasped Blaze’s hand in his own. He let a bit of psychic energy flow, triggering a small stream of fire to meet Silver’s stream of energy. The two forms of energy circled around their hands, forming a ring of power. “You can control fire, Blaze. You can cancel out Iblis’ fires with your own, and use his power as your own weapon. And I can hold and move anything! I could destroy Iblis’ armor, and shatter his body with weapons from the ground itself. Think about it - if anyone can defeat Iblis, it’d be us.”

“Silver…” Blaze’s eyes were wide. It was true! If anyone had a chance at defeating Iblis, a pyrokinetic and a psychokinetic had the best chance of anyone. She moved her free hand onto Silver’s, holding it tightly. “Then I think we have our mission.”

“Right.” Silver nodded. “It’s time to destroy Iblis…”

“...and save our world, no matter what it takes!”

\---

“So, they’re finally taking action…”

An Iblis Taker soared over Metropolis Zone, seeing the large central building. After a moment’s focus, it detected a great heat coming from within. The pyrokinetic… It began to send the information back to the hivemind, aiming to call its master to the base-

*shkk!*

Unfortunately, it never got the chance. The beast was impaled with a sharp purple crystal. As the crystal was yanked back to its creator, the Iblis Taker disintegrated into dust.

Standing on the edge of one of the large destroyed factories was a black hedgehog, pale blue stripes across its quills. The sharp crystal vanished back into the creature’s hand, resuming a lazy slouch as its creepy green eyes glared at the main building Silver and Blaze were inside.

“I do wish Iblis had enough intellect to hold a conversation with. This would be so much easier if I could simply instruct it not to mess with my pawns…”

Mephiles the Dark narrowed his eyes, watching the pair through the window with great interest.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Huh, I actually got this one out before the end of the month! I hope you folks enjoyed the second chapter. I was contemplating fusing Chapters 2 and 3 originally, but writing Chapter 2 ended up reaching the same length as Chapter 1 through natural progression of the tale! In this chapter we get a small look into what Silver and Blaze can do and how they act, as well as the first encounter with Iblis... and the reveal that Mephiles is ALREADY in the picture! The beginning of Silver's Story from Sonic '06 will come in Chapter 4, but before we get to that, it's time to finish off the Prologue Arc with Silver and Blaze's first battle against Iblis! Hope you guys are excited, and I'll see you next time.  
> (P.S.: I write these things on-and-off when I get the drive to, so I forgot I was writing the story on Mirage Island! I ended up writing the underground portion as if it took place in Mystic Cave. Just imagine Mirage Island has a crystal cave system like Westside and Angel Islands do, hahah!)


	3. The Flames of Disaster (Prologue Arc)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> With new determination in hand, Silver and Blaze attempt to prove themselves as heroes by using their latent abilities for their true purpose - destroying Iblis, the monster that destroyed the world! Can the pair triumph, or will they be consumed by the Flames of Disaster?

The city formerly known as Central City. The heart of modern civilization… or it had been, 200 years ago. Now it was simply a burning wasteland like the rest of the planet.

Loud, lumbering steps slammed across the ground as a titanic colossus walked ahead, the large horn on its head cutting through a skyscraper and collapsing it without the beast even taking notice. The ground seared as its large feet made of raw lava burned through it, hardly noticeable from the tall flames still burning across what used to be streets. And still its green, burning eyes looked ahead for any signs of life…

This was Iblis. The enemy.

“Over here, you monster!”

That’s when a voice got Iblis’ attention. The monster’s eye slowly looked west to a half-destroyed building, as a cloaked figure stood atop it. He sensed the individual’s power…

Grabbing the edge of his hood, Silver the Hedgehog ripped the cloak off of himself and tossed it away.

“We’ve got unfinished business!”

Iblis seemed almost bored as it lazily pointed a finger towards the building. As it did, a swarm of Iblis Takers flew in from behind it. Surrounding himself with psychic energy, Silver blasted off through the air as he flew around the building. Seeing the Takers coming in behind him, he knew he needed to take them down quickly - the less distractions, the better. He noticed a broken window on the building nearby, the glass shards still there. Exactly what he needed. As he flew past, he grabbed the shards with his psychokinesis, pulling them behind him into the shape of wings. As soon as he got enough distance, he turned around in midair, firing the glass shards off like a hail of shrapnel. The Iblis Takers were instantly cut down, save for one - that one was dealt with by a powerful kick that took its head clean off.

Iblis was on the move again…

Unwilling to waste time, Silver flew back into the field, dodging blasts of flame from below as he circled around towards Iblis’ front. “Hey! Don’t you ignore me!” He clapped, psychic energy flowing across the area. Seeing a flagpole nearby, he ripped it out of the building it was in and sent it like a javelin towards Iblis’ forehead.

It was equivalent to attacking a bear with a toothpick, but it definitely got Iblis’ attention.

The creature let out a roar, a large igneous rock hand swinging towards Silver. The hedgehog flew out of the way quickly. He was forced to weave through the air to avoid several fireballs launched by the beast, sweat dripping from his head from the raw heat. As he flew, his eyes searched around for the point he was looking for… And he found it. An open-air stage half-destroyed held an extended ledge out that used to be one end of a bridge. It was the exact location he needed. Silver made sure to grab a few stones on the way, throwing them right in Iblis’ face to keep his attention on the hedgehog. With a roar, the beast stumbled along after him.

Silver smiled to himself. On one hand, he now had a giant fire monster on his tail. On the other hand, that was the plan from the start.

Stopping at the broken bridge, Silver landed on it. Tensing up, he grabbed several large signs still hanging off the stage, wielding them like shields. Iblis roared as the monster launched several flaming stones at Silver, the signs preventing them from hitting. “Come on, Iblis! You’ve got more than pebbles to hurt me with, right?!”

Indeed it did, as Iblis bent low, opening its mouth and beginning to breathe a wave of fire right at Silver.

“Just as planned!”

That’s when Blaze, who had been hiding at the top of the stage, dropped down in front of Silver. She snapped, and the fire rose up before it could hit either Silver or herself. The flames suddenly began to surge backwards, reentering Iblis’ mouth and causing havoc inside. The monster roared as its insides began to shift wildly, burning from inside out. Fire spurted from its eyes as Blaze twisted her hands through the air, forcing the flames to ravage the beast.

“Come on… Come on…!”

That’s when Blaze lost control. With a short yell, she stumbled back as Iblis flared, the sudden increase in fiery mass becoming too much for her to control. Silver quickly caught his partner. “Blaze! Are you alright?!”

“We need to move.” Blaze said, quickly regaining her bearings. “It’s going to recover!”

With a nod, Silver took Blaze’s hand and soared into the air. The pair began to fly, avoiding the monster’s hurled, flaming debris. 

As Silver looked down, it registered for him once again that the floor was lava… quite literally. The entire city floor was coated in a mixture of lava and red-hot flames, constantly moving and burning everything around. It was a miracle the destroyed buildings were still intact.

Blaze was thinking during the flight, trying to spot some form of weakness. “Its eyes… In order for a monster like that to have vision, its sight must be connected to something… Perhaps it has some equivalent to a brain…?”

“Blaze, do you have an idea?” Silver asked, barely avoiding a launched rock.

“I think I might. Find something long - very long - and sharp.”

Nodding, Silver quickly flew up to a rooftop, putting Blaze down. As he flew off to find something to use, Blaze turned to the monster. Taking a deep breath, the cat clasped her hands together, gathering her power. The fire still burning in the building she stood in began to flow towards her, joining together into a single large orb of flame. Opening her eyes, Blaze raised a hand above her head, the fireball positioning itself just above her fingers… and she swung her arm towards Iblis, sending the orb crashing against its head. The beast let out a brief cry as the flames scorched the rock covering its face…

Like armor. It seemed Blaze’s theory was correct.

Roaring, Iblis swung a large lava arm at Blaze. She was forced to bail, quickly leaping away from the building as it was split in half by the beast. The cat landed on her feet on a nearby roof, breaking into a run to avoid the hardened lava stones fired from Iblis’ chest towards her. Burnt bricks were torn up as she dashed, avoiding collapsing sections of the roof in order to not be trapped inside. She kept up the attacks where she was able, sending smaller shots of fire towards its head and eyes. She even hit its eye with a few, further angering it.

But just as she was about to leap to the next building, Iblis swept an arm out and destroyed the base of the building, causing it to collapse. Blaze stumbled, losing her balance as the roof she was standing on fell apart beneath her feet. The cat found herself falling towards the lava lake below…

_ Not how I was planning to try out this technique, but desperate times! _

Sticking out her palms towards the ground, Blaze forced herself to call forwards the flames before her, drawing a jet of flame from the surroundings and calling it to her palm, another joining her other palm. The next moment, flames gathered at her feet, the raw force of the fire keeping her aloft with makeshift fire jets. Unfortunately, she wasn’t exactly gaining any altitude. Blaze quickly blasted herself over to a tipped-over building, regaining her footing and dissipating the flames. Long-stretch flight was something she didn’t have the control to achieve just yet…

As Blaze ran, she saw Silver returning from just over the horizon.

He’d found something long and sharp, just like Blaze had asked. A broken satellite tower. The dish had already been torn off by Iblis’ creatures, leaving only the jagged metal structure. In the hands of a psychokinetic, however, it served as a giant javelin.

“Blaze! I got something long and sharp, like you wanted!”

Iblis began to turn towards Silver, its eyes now on the hedgehog.

“That’s perfect!” Blaze yelled back. “Now follow my lead!”

Blaze suddenly snapped her fingers, causing a small explosion. She launched herself into the air, leaping elegantly off of some mostly-destroyed buildings and setting her up to fly right towards Silver.

“Put me on its head!”

“WHAT?! But you-”

“Do it, Silver!”

With a grunt, Silver caved. He grabbed Blaze telekinetically as she leapt towards him, arcing his partner through the air and sending her flying towards Iblis’ rocky face. Once she was freed, Blaze began using small flames to redirect herself, breaking into a spin through the air…

And with the pointed edge of her shoe, Blaze began to drill into Iblis’ forehead, cracking the cooled magma as much as she could.

“WROOOOOOOARH!”

“SILVER, NOW!”

Recognizing his cue, Silver flew in. He aimed right for the cracked stone.

“TAKE THIS, IBLIS! THIS IS FOR THE WORLD YOU STOLE FROM US!”

With a yell of fury, Silver stabbed the tower right through Iblis’ head.

For a few moments, Silver and Blaze simply remained still, right in front of the head of their greatest enemy and the one responsible for ruining their world. It wasn’t moving. Neither did they.

Gradually, however, the stone composing the beast began to fall apart. The distinctly monstrous shape began to collapse, lava dripping into the floor as Iblis turned into a collapsing pile of lava and rock. Silver grabbed Blaze, abandoning the tower as they flew up and to safety.

As Silver and Blaze moved up, they reached solid ground by returning to a destroyed - but stable - rooftop. As they finally touched down, Blaze leaned against a smokestack as Silver hunched down into a squat and panted. “That… Was a lot.” Silver huffed.

“Yeah.” Blaze sighed. “Almost fell into the lava moat down there. Gods, that was dangerous…”

“But…” Silver said, looking over to her. “We’re still here. We survived. We won.”

“...”

And it slowly set in.

“WE WON!”

Joy blasted across Blaze and Silver’s faces as the magnitude of their accomplishment set in. Iblis was destroyed, and by their hands. Silver instantly leapt on Blaze, pulling her into a hug she gratefully returned. The two laughed happily, Silver spinning them around in the air as they embraced. “We… We did it!”

Slowly, Silver brought them back down. “Iblis… Iblis is gone! No more Ibli! No more endless fire! We can start rebuilding the world, Blaze! Make it a better place again!” Blaze turned her back to Silver for a bit, walking over to the edge of the roof as she laughed. Silver continued. “We- We’ve gotta find all the Nomads we can, spread the news. We could turn Metropolis into the site of a new city! Gods, I never thought I’d ever see a city, much less make one! We can rebuild the world now, and it’s…”

“It’s…”

“Blaze? Why aren’t you…?”

As Silver looked over to Blaze, he noticed her expression had turned from unbridled joy to unhindered despair.

“Silver… They’re still coming.”

“Wh-”

Words failed Silver. He ran to meet Blaze’s side, looking down at the lava far below them… and watched in horror as new Ibli began to seep out.

“What…?” Silver fell to his knees, his eyes wide in shock. “But… But Iblis, we destroyed him…! How can they…?”

“We made… a critical misunderstanding.”

Slowly, Blaze’s hand raised, pointing out towards the pillar of flame in the distance.

“The monster we destroyed, Silver… That’s never been the true Iblis.”

  
“The fire, Silver… That’s Iblis. The  **Flames of Disaster** .”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HAH IT'S 10:51 PM IN THIS TIMEZONE SO I TECHNICALLY GOT THIS ONE OUT ON TIME  
> The Prologue Arc has officially come to a conclusion. Silver and Blaze are now ready for the events of the games to take place as their first confrontation with Iblis has come to a conclusion. The immortal beast is now known as what it truly is, and the meat of the pair's mission can now begin. You guys ready for Silver's Story? The future unfolds next time as we enter the Soleanna Arc! It's time to Trigger a new story~  
> (P.S. I promised to get one chapter out a month, and I'll stick to that! Want to know what I'm doing in the meantime? Follow me at @MechanistGamma on Twitter for updates on my Sonic fangame, Sonic: Root of Resonance!)


	4. Come On, You Monster! (Scorched World Arc)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Silver and Blaze are once again on the hunt for Iblis, traversing the dangerous Crisis City in search of the monster. How has the relentless hunt of an immortal beast taken its toll on Silver's optimistic young mind?

_ From the diary of Silver the Hedgehog. _

Crisis City. Known formerly as… something-ending-with-a-N Square. He’d only managed to find half of a billboard marking the city’s name back before the fire. Today wasn’t a scavenger run, however - he’d gotten that done a few days ago.

_ This world was devastated before I was born. A harsh, bleak place where we live in eternal darkness. Life is a struggle, and people live without hope. _

As Silver flew past the half-broken skyscrapers, he looked about, his eyes scanning for any sign of what he was looking for.

_ How did this happen? No one will answer me directly. But they always point… _

Momentary shock appeared on Silver’s face. The hedgehog stopped in midair, covering his head as a geyser of fire suddenly shot up from the lava-coated ground far below him.

_...to the flames. _

With a narrowed brow, Silver gathered psychic energy into his left hand. He swung outwards, the burst of energy dispersing the plume of fire instantly. He looked ahead at where the fire had just been, his mind swirling.

_ These flames. They burn away at my world, destroying everything in their path. They come from an eternal life form that we can never truly defeat. The Flames of Disaster… known as Iblis. _

“Silver!”

Silver snapped out of his melancholy thoughts at the sound of the voice. He quickly turned behind him to see his partner hopping down onto a nearby building.

“Blaze!” Silver focused on her as she ran to the corner of the building. “What’s wrong?”

Blaze pointed inwards, towards the center of the city. “He’s appeared again!”

So he really was here. Silver turned towards the central square - or what was left of it, anyways. It was still off in the distance… but indeed, he could faintly feel whatever that monster had in place of a mind. Gathering his energy inwards with a curl, he blasted himself off across the city, Blaze leaping off behind him.

The hedgehog landed close to a giant plume of flame. No sign of Iblis. “Are you sure he’s around here?”

“Positive.” Blaze nodded, landing beside him. “There’s far too many monsters for Iblis to not be here.”

“Then I guess we gotta fight our way through to the big man!”

Silver began running forwards, grabbing a nearby boulder and smashing two Iblis Biters, flattening them with the destroyed car they were standing on. Silver hopped onto a nearby car, using his psychokinesis to lift the car up as a platform to the ledge Blaze had just hopped onto. Looking ahead, he saw a half-destroyed road with several Iblis Biters on it, some boulders on the other end. With a smirk, Silver grabbed and launched a series of crates, smashing through the first support and causing the road to fall forward. The Ibli were crushed underneath the boulders as Silver and Blaze hopped past. Silver quickly flew to a destroyed building to the left, turning a nearby water tower into a platform to lift Blaze up to the top of the building. As they turned, they saw their current footing wasn’t that solid - a different skyscraper had toppled onto it, creating a large bridge now occupied by several Ibli.

“Mind if I take these ones?”

“Be my guest.”

Blaze dashed forwards, driving her heel through one of the three Iblis Biters and destroying it. She jumped, spinning to kick the second Biter as she drilled through the third. Bouncing off of her targets, she stomped on two Iblis Biters.

Silver, meanwhile, was moving down the building when he saw a pack of Iblis Biters up ahead… and a pipe just above him. “I can wipe them out if I hit that pipe right…” Silver grabbed a box at his side, flinging it into the pipe. As he did, the large metal tube rolled down the tilted bridge, smashing through the monsters ahead. Blaze quickly rejoined him, giving him a thumbs-up as they moved ahead. Silver destroyed another platform’s support, causing it to tilt towards the pair. Blaze destroyed the Ibli with a pair of quick kicks, Silver flying ahead and shattering the window to enter a more structurally sound building.

“Need a breather?” Blaze asked. She could hear Silver letting out a few pants.

“N-nah. I’m good.” He took in a deep breath, standing up straight with a stretch. “We can’t let Iblis get away.”

Silver leapt over a gap in the floor, Blaze following behind with a short burst of fire to ensure she landed safely. Silver turned back to look at Blaze for a moment…

“LOOK OUT!”

Who then pulled him out of the way, as the floor shattered beneath them. An Iblis Worm burst out of the ground, letting out a roar as it sent a fireball flying at the pair. Blaze snapped, taking control of the flame and sending it right back towards the monster’s open mouth, triggering an implosion as the worm sizzled and melted.

“Th-thanks…” Silver chuckled nervously.

“I’ve got your back. Always.” Blaze smiled at him. Silver smiled back.

The pair continued. Walking out onto a support beam, Silver slammed his palm into the ground. Pushing psychic power into it, he bent the beam downwards. As soon as Blaze entered the proper posture, Silver released his hold, the kinetic energy launching the pair up into the air like a spring. Splitting into two directions for the time being, Silver landed in what used to be a market street judging by the sign overhead. As he landed, a pack of Iblis Biters dropped down from the buildings nearby.

“Don’t get in my way!”

Silver grabbed a pair of destroyed cards from nearby, snapping as he began to spin them around like a giant, blunt fan. They smashed up the Ibli as he ran through, breaking upon destroying a wall. The hedgehog was forced to take the defensive, however, when he found himself faced with an Iblis Golem. The titan bore down on him, forming a spiked molten rock in his hands and launching it at Silver. Holding out his hand, the psychic caught it. The next moment, he sent it flying at the head of the monster. It shattered into pieces. 

Breathing a sigh of relief, Silver flew into the air to one of the upper levels of the building, searching for- aha! Another broken support beam. He once again bent it downwards and launched off of it as a spring, this time landing on a fallen road sign. “Chao Garden…?” Silver looked down in confusion towards the sign for a moment before continuing on. A half-destroyed wall blocked his path towards the next flaming spire, so he quickly destroyed it with some thrown debris, flying across. Seeing the road ahead, he threw a pipe and car out of the way as he landed on the bridge, a few Ibli in front of him… That were quickly destroyed by a volley of flame as gentle footsteps landed behind him. Silver and Blaze nodded to each other, Silver taking Blaze’s hand and launching off into the distance.

As the pair landed at a destroyed skyscraper, they chose to split up once again. Blaze dropped down, choosing the lower route for herself. She ran out of the building onto a half-destroyed road, quickly using her flames to boost her upwards to a higher section. She blasted herself forwards, circling a loop-de-loop and leaping onto a building. Quickly dispatching a pair of Iblis Biters, she grinded across a rail briefly before leaping into the air above an Iblis Worm and a pack of Iblis Takers. With a yell of power, she dropped down on them and unleashed a wave of fire from her impact, reducing all the monsters to ashes. Closing her eyes for a moment, she tried to feel what direction they needed to go.

“We need to cross those buildings.” she determined, waving to Silver to bring him down. The hedgehog took her hand once again, sending the two soaring through the interior of two nearby skyscrapers and ramming through a pack of Ibli. Leaping out on the other side of a shattered window, the broken road Blaze landed on collapsed beneath her. She quickly ran past the Ibli, leaping up onto a nearby rooftop. Looking around, she tried to spot Iblis.

“Any sign of it?” Silver asked, landing beside her.

“Not yet.” Blaze shook her head. “But I can feel its presence. Further inward.”

“Then that’s where we go!”

Silver and Blaze flew into the horizon once more.

They’d now arrived in the denser part of the city, as Silver could see destroyed yet structurally intact buildings all around him. He began flying past the destroyed street, roadways collapsing as Blaze hopped across them. Silver covered his face as an intense wave of heat suddenly blasted him. He looked forward to find the source - a flaming tornado, whirling in front of him. “Blaze! Watch out for things flying out of that tornado.” Silver quickly warned, barely dodging a flying car thrown his way. With a nod, Blaze quickly leapt onto a fallen skyscraper. Silver joined her, the pair running up its side. As they fled from the tornado, however, Blaze suddenly stumbled. Seeing cover behind a nearby wall, Silver grabbed her and hid behind it. “Blaze! What’s wrong?”

Blaze took a deep breath. “Are you ready to fight, Silver?”

“That’s what we came here for, isn’t it?”

“Then get ready. The moment you break this wall, we’ll be face to face with Iblis.”

“It’s-” Silver nodded. “Right. I’m with you.”

“And I with you.”

Silver grabbed a car, smashing the wall. As he did, the pair ran into a broken sports arena, the lava bubbling ahead of them.

Silver and Blaze ran to the edge of the destroyed terrain, watching as the molten rock rose out of the flames before them. Large, rock-covered shoulders rose to meet them as a lava body stretched out, its four long arms to either side of the terrain. And its sharp green eyes bore down on the pair. The monster’s giant mouth let out a loud roar as it faced down the duo. Iblis was awake, and ready to destroy.

Silver and Blaze stumbled back, covering their faces for a moment from the raw heat radiated by the beast. They turned back a moment later, Silver clutching his fist.

It was time. Time to risk it all to take down this monster again.

“COME ON, YOU MONSTER!”

Silver let out a battle cry as he swung his arm, ready to fight. Blaze adjusted her foot, prepared to face the beast alongside him. Grabbing a boulder from next to him, Silver sent it flying at Iblis’ head, the monster roaring as it smashed against his molten skull. Silver and Blaze broke into a run in opposite directions, splitting its attention. It was ready for that, however. Curling its arms towards its chest, Iblis let out a cry of fury as it launched a volley of molten rocks across the battlefield. Blaze gasped as she barely dodged some of the boulders, forced to dance around as the ground beneath her feet was melted through. Silver, meanwhile, caught the boulders sent his way. With a yell of effort, he launched the stones back at Iblis’ face, this time blocked by the monster’s arm.

Iblis sent his other arms outwards, tearing off chunks from nearby buildings. He cracked the stones overhead, sending a wave of debris falling towards Silver. It was too much for him to catch on his own. Which is why he was lucky Blaze was able to dash over and yank him out of the way, the flames at her heels launching the pair to safety. Silver let out a sigh of relief, nodding to Blaze with a smile.

“Hey, Iblis! Thanks for the ammo!”

Several pieces of the debris were suddenly coated in teal energy, Silver lifting up his hand before throwing it forwards, launching a wave of concrete, steel and rock towards Iblis. The monster tried to block it, but the barrage tore away at his armor. He let out a cry as the molten horns on his head, the plates on his back and his shoulderguards were torn away. The attack wasn’t over yet, however - Blaze had used one of the larger pieces of debris as a transport, leaping into the air and drilling into Iblis’ head to shatter the remaining rock guarding the beast. 

“Is it over?” SIlver asked.

Blaze shook her head. “It’s not over yet! Don’t let your guard down, Silver!”

With a roar, Iblis attempted to snap its molten jaws around the cat. She quickly unleashed a blast of flame, the small explosion sending her flying back into Silver’s range to catch her. The angry monster retaliated by opening up its maw and launching a jet of flame outwards towards the pair. Blaze held out her hands, diverting the flames with difficulty.

“Silver, now!”

“Right!” Silver snapped, grabbing a pillar from nearby and ripping it from the destroyed building. “TAKE THIS, IBLIS! HYAH!” Launching the stone forward, he shattered it against Iblis’ head, ripping off the top half of the lava skull.

With a cry of pain, Iblis’ arms flew into the air, the monster’s life fading. Lava dropped from its body as it slowly sunk down, falling once again into the fiery depths.

“Looks like we stopped it for now.” Blaze crossed her arms, looking over the pool of lava that continued to flow.

Silver shook his head. “But it’ll just rise up from its ashes again.” Turning to the nearby wall, he slammed his fist into it. “What’s the point of all this? It’ll never end!”

“Calm down, Silver.” Blaze was shocked to see this kind of attitude from Silver. He was supposed to be the optimistic one.

But these journeys out across the world to find and destroy Iblis had become… routine. A stalling tactic where the slightest mistake results in death. Even the most optimistic of people would be worn down by something like their actions.

“Then tell me what we should do!” Silver replied. He wanted an end to this. He wanted to  _ save the world _ , not just maintain the stalemate.Blaze knew that well. “How can we completely destroy Iblis?!”

Blaze looked away, closing her eyes. She just didn’t know. None of them knew.

None of them knew if they even could.

“...By knowing the truth, of course.”

Silver and Blaze froze at the sound of the voice. A Nomad, out here? In surprise, the pair turned around, looking up to the ledge of the broken wall they had passed earlier.

Looking down at the duo seemed to be a black hedgehog. He wore a pair of rings, one on each hand at the cufflinks. His green eyes seemed cold, but yet resolute. There were odd pale blue streaks across the back of his quills pointed slightly upwards.

But what unsettled Blaze was the newcomer’s lack of a mouth…

“Just as a flower comes from a seed, or a chicken comes from an egg, everything has an origin.” The strange figure raised his hands towards the sky, adding a little dramatic flair to his monologue. “You need to find the being originally responsible for this catastrophe.”

Blaze narrowed her eyes. Something was off about this figure-

“Is that really the answer to our problem?”

Blaze looked to see Silver had taken a few steps towards the figure. For a moment, she thought to pull him back.

Silver pointed at the figure with a shaky finger. “Tell me, do you know who it is?”

Slowly, the hedgehog lowered his arm, his head turning towards Silver. From what Blaze could see, he had a sinister look on his face.

“Why, of course.” He slowly nodded. “Come with me, and I will give you all the answers you seek.”

“And who exactly are we following?” Blaze asked, standing in front of Silver.

“Only a helpful Nomad.” the hedgehog assured the pair. “But for the sake of conversation…”

  
“...you may call me  **Mephiles** .”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And so, the Sonic '06 adaptation has begun! My current plan is to directly adapt what happens in the cutscenes and the levels, adding a look at things from Silver and Blaze's inner perspectives as well as their outer perspectives and adding a bit of spice to things. Yes, this does mean that I won't be touching existing dialogue. Cutscene dialogue will be brought into ABBTAS exactly as it was in the original games. However, I do get to add in original dialogue within the levels themselves and between chapters of the story. So that's what I plan to do! Join us next time for Silver's return to the past.  
> (P.S. I promised to get one chapter out a month, and I'll stick to that! Want to know what I'm doing in the meantime? Follow me at @MechanistGamma on Twitter for updates on my Sonic fangame, Sonic: Root of Resonance!)


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